Best team performance is achieved with a united team
Published
30th Jun 2016
by bathamm
Your best performance can only be created when you have a team that is fully aligned. They need to be working together towards a collective purpose that is bigger than the individual, says Cass Coulston.
Want to bring out the best in your team? Here are my top 5 tips.
- Define direction: Find an emotionally engaging common purpose. A strong sense of purpose unites team so they want to perform at their best. How compelling is Nike’s mission: “Bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world”? This is not about the numbers but the reason you team gets out of bed every morning with a desire to get to work!
- Understand each other: Understanding your individual and collective preferences will make you a higher-performing and more engaged team. And a diverse range of perspectives and experiences means you have more skills and strengths to draw from. Is there enough diversity and inclusivity in your team? Global studies have shown that companies with a diverse and inclusive culture are 45% more likely to have increased their market share in a 12-month period.*
- Embrace disagreement: Healthy debate unlocks creativity. Without it, teams risk collusion and miss the heart of the issue. Diversity of thought and talent leads to better results – as long as your communication is done in a way that respects all team members.
- Find your strengths: Are you maximising the right strengths of the team to set off a positive chain reaction? People playing to their strengths are more productive and enthusiastic, which means better performance. Strengths building can improve employee engagement by 73%** and great customer experiences by up to 44%.
- Say thank you: Celebrate small milestones and celebrate big ones too. Understand how to do so in a way that resonates with your team. Be descriptive in your praise.
